Planet Rise was co-founded by Steve and Liz Melhuish due to growing concerns about climate change.

Steve had spent the previous 28 years building tech start-ups and business. This included co-founder and CEO of Asian unicorn PropertyGuru, used by 37 million people monthly in 5 countries. After hiring his successor and handing over all operational responsibilities in 2018, Steve was thinking “what next?“. In 2018, the beat of the climate drum was becoming deafening, with mounting records of drought, flooding, wildfire and temperatures. Scientists were in agreement, our planet is deteriorating at a horrific pace and time is running out.

Planet Rise combines Steve’s start-up and investment experience with Liz’s 20 years in corporate finance and change management roles. They are investing personal funds and time to play a small part in mitigating a climate emergency and make the world a better place for their children’s generation”
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Fortunately, there are reasons to be optimistic in the battle against climate change. Governments are making net zero commitments and implementing new green policies. Businesses are hiring Chief Sustainability Officers, publishing sustainability plans, selecting sustainable suppliers and publishing their ESG credentials. Consumers are voting with their money, choosing to buy more sustainable products and work for purposeful companies. Investors are moving trillions of dollars away from fossil fuels and business practices that harm the environment. The technologies required to reduce green house gas emissions by the necessary 51 billon tonnes per annum already exist - we just need to accelerate adoption.

Planet Rise advises, and has invested million of dollars, into a growing portfolio of climate and social impact “greentech” companies. We back entrepreneurs primarily in Asia that have the potential to mitigate >1GT of green house gas emissions, or improve the lives of >10M people, within a decade. Our primary focus is climate change and secondary focus is social inequality - positively impacting 10 of the UN Sustainability Development Goals (UN SDG’s). In addition, we support sustainability tech focused programmes including HabitatForHumanity’s Sheltertech for new affordable housing tech, Capitaland’s Sustainable Buildings accelerator and judge/investor for Temasek Foundation’s The Liveability Challenge. Planet Rise also supports charitable projects focused on fostering the next generation of sustainability entrepreneurs and addressing social inequality such as NVPC, Lighthouse and Asia Startup Network (MentorForHope and MakanForHope). Planet Rise is also a member of Entrepreneur Organisation (EO), Asian Venture and Philanthropy Network (AVPN) and Top Tier Impact (TTI) organisations.

Planet Rise prides itself on supporting purposeful innovators, fostering collaboration, embracing humanity, and pursuing optimism. We believe that the fight against climate change and towards nurturing sustainability is an uphill battle which can only be won with a positive mindset, by working together, and exercising our belief in respect and the equality of all human beings